Rising levels of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will reduce the amount of nutrients in staple crops such as rice and wheat, say researchers at Harvard’s public health school. As a consequence, more than 1 billion women and children would lose a large amount of their dietary iron intake and be at larger risk of anemia and other diseases.
The study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, said by 2050, less nutritious crops would mean 175 million people would become zinc deficient and 122 million people would become protein deficient. At present, more than 2 billion of the world’s 7.6 billion people are deficient in one or more nutrients.
The poorest people would experience the greatest impact from the change in nutrients, says the study. India, the second most populous counry on earth, would see the greatest impact, with 502 million women and children under age 5 becoming vulnerable to diseases related to iron deficiency. Countries in Africa, the Middle East and in South and Southeast Asia also would be impacted significantly.